JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION
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- Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) in Kanto region
- RCS (RCSコーポレーション), Kanto
- Salary: ¥180,000 ~ ¥250,000 / Month includes performance bonus
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- Assistant Language Teacher - TOKYO - late-March start
- Interac, Tokyo
- Salary: ¥230,000 ~ ¥255,000 / Month
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- Assistant Language Teacher - Kanagawa Prefecture - late-March start
- Interac, Kanagawa
- Salary: ¥230,000 ~ ¥255,000 / Month
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sk4ek
Gee I can get a brand-new netbook for that price.
Posted in: Wireless mouse
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sk4ek
Great for Gov. Lingle, trumpeting this "win" for the state while at the same time slashing most of the staffing for the state's Film Office, virtually guaranteeing that future projects will be few and far between, and poorly supported if and when they do transpire. The Film Office is responsible for generating almost $200 million annually for the state in filming-related revenue, but with three of four staffers laid off (the office itself is required by law to remain in place, even if it has ZERO staff), its ability to continue to attract new projects is seriously in jeopardy.
Posted in: Fourth 'Pirates' to be filmed in Hawaii
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sk4ek
As someone whose only real luxury is taking taxis, but who is trying to walk more, this is a nifty idea, and reasonably priced, too.
Posted in: Taxi Walker
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sk4ek
On the one hand, these kinds of surveys are notoriously unreliable, for the simple fact that men are inherently untruthful about their sex lives.
On the other hand, of course, why would all these men go out of their way to lie about having little or no sex life, rather than trying to--ahem--pump up their meager (or non-existent) experiences?
I think the psychological state described by the last "poster boy" 38 year-old gentleman says a lot. Despite, or perhaps because of, having been raised in a culture where sex--or at least the suggestion of it--is everywhere, these men seem desensitized to it, and fail to see the connection between a fulfilling sex life and a fulfilled life in general. The pervasiveness of the "anything goes" approach fueled by the for-profit sex industry has resulted in a complete divorce of the physical act from emotional satisfaction.
A lot of my Japanese male friends in their 20s and 30s (not that they are a particularly representative lot) give the same reasons for their lack of interest that we've heard for decades here--long commutes and work hours, little free time, spouses working, no privacy, no energy, etc.--but talking to them reveals that, really, they just don't think a barren sex life is anything to get worked up about.
Posted in: Sexless in Japan
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sk4ek
Truly scary stuff...
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sk4ek
Late April is nice, especially with the gardens in their spring finery, but with all the great seafood and other seasonal delicacies, I prefer mid-October. It's not particularly cold then, either.
Posted in: Kanazawa: A heart of gold on the Sea of Japan
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sk4ek
Kanazawa proper is a wonderful city (its outlying commercial sprawl is no better or worse than any other in Japan), one of the few I've visited in Japan where they've managed to nicely preserve the town's older architecture while introducing interesting, modern touches as well. The Museum of Contemporary Art is excellent, there are great Japanese gardens, temples, and large sections of well-maintained traditional samurai homes. Public transportation is woefully lacking, but the central part of the city is compact and ideal for walking tours.
Posted in: Kanazawa: A heart of gold on the Sea of Japan
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sk4ek
The media's use of hyperbolic, vaguely violent verbs such as "rip", "blast", and "slam" to describe criticism by or of public figures.
The use of windy modifiers to explain why a person is being quoted anonymously ("...because he was not authorized to speak on the matter...", "...because negotiations were confidential...", etc. When did this trend start???).
Posted in: What for you is the most annoying English word or expression?
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sk4ek
I eat a lot of chicken (budgetary reasons) though not KFC... and the microwave/convection oven I have can easily fit a large whole chicken, or a turkey minus the drumsticks. Either come out superbly moist on the inside, crisp outside using the "water oven" feature (Sharp/Helsio).
I was really surprised how well it came out.
No more Christmas KFC!
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sk4ek
Lately I find the phrase "it is what it is" superbly annoying, and overused. It combines an attempt to avoid responsibility with a defeatist expectation that completely takes the wind out of the listener's sails.
Posted in: What for you is the most annoying English word or expression?
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sk4ek
KFC is okay once in a while, but I still don't understand why the price is double that of the U.S. ...
Christmas turkeys, hams, etc. are all available at not-too-extortionate prices from Nagoya's TheMeatGuy.com . I cooked one of their turkeys for a Christmas party and it turned out magnificent.
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sk4ek
But find one of the really good kissaten in Tokyo and you're in for a treat, although at 1,000 yen+ a cup. Arabica in the heart of Akasaka is a good example--the owner probably knows more about coffee beans and varieties than any Starbucks supervisor, doesn't mess around with espresso or other "fancy" beverages, and serves probably the best-tasting cup of coffee I've ever had.
So I think while there's some validity to the negative opinions about Japanese "coffee culture" (it's true that, after the war, highly acid, almost sour coffee was considered "good" coffee--many old people still prefer it that way), you can't really paint the whole market with the same brush.
Posted in: Bringing Italian cafe culture to Japan
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sk4ek
Gee, what ever happened to sending flowers???
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sk4ek
The statistic on revenue from sales of canned coffee comes courtesy of the business documentary series "Gaia no Yoake", which covered the issue in its most recent episode. By the way, I think I've seen an Illy canned coffee on the shelves here, too... Illy brand ground espresso beans are sold at Costco in Kanto, they make great coffee if you have the right coffee pot.
Posted in: Bringing Italian cafe culture to Japan
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sk4ek
Seriously good coffee, a big challenge working with a crowd that consumes USD 8 *billion *a year in canned coffee, though.
Posted in: Bringing Italian cafe culture to Japan
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sk4ek
The view from the Marunouchi Hotel is nice too.
Posted in: Fans flock to city hotels for rail view
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sk4ek
Once again, while this is an abominable, despicable act, I really don't see what makes any aspect of this story a unique condemnation of the Japanese people as a whole, their values, or their society. Much to the discredit of modern civilization, you can find this kind of thing going on pretty much anywhere in the world, for similarly unthinkable reasons and often with far fewer consequences than these two will eventually face.
Moderator: Readers, forget about what happens in other countries. That's not relevant. Please focus your comments on this crime and Japan.
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sk4ek
The Hakone sculpture garden does have a lot of wonderful pieces that are well worth the trip to see. This strange article doesn't do the place justice, though.
Posted in: A visit to Hakone Open Air Museum
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sk4ek
People always take these things too literally. Robots like this are designed not for the purpose of exploring the possibilities of robot ping-pong (or other similarly inane activities), but as a way of extending and testing various technology components or solving very specific problems in robot development (balance, vision, reaction time, etc.). The ping-pong aspect (and the macho design, too, I suppose) are really just a convenient vehicle that also serves to make these incremental advances in technology more appealing, and less threatening, to the average person.
Still, someone really went overboard sculpting this one. He doesn't look like a 'Topio'.
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sk4ek
Just as with the "endless bubble-wrap popping" and "endless edamame popping" toys, it's all about the sensation... :)
Which, of course, is hard to describe...
Posted in: The big squeeze